[Auto Moto] Research has shown that women are 50% more likely than men to be seriously injured in road accidents.

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The lives of women and older drivers are more at risk, especially with the government delaying new safety measures for car manufacturers, the AA claims, with research showing that women are 50 percent more likely than men to be seriously injured in road accidents.

 

From July, new car models in Northern Ireland and the European Union will have to come with new safety features, they will have to get head-on crash protection such as airbags and seat belts that are not harmful to women and the elderly.

 

The package of safety measures was developed with the help of British experts and was finalized while Britain was still in the EU, but because it is being phased in, it does not automatically apply to Britain.

 

Although opinion polls have shown support for the new measures in the UK, and experts have also supported the features, the UK government currently has no plans to adopt the rule in Great Britain.

 

This has led to criticism from car groups who say the measures could protect women and elderly drivers from drivers.

 

Women and the elderly are more at risk

In 2011, a study by the University of Virginia Center for Applied Biomechanics revealed that female drivers involved in car accidents were 47% more likely to suffer serious injury or death than their male counterparts. According to the research, women were 80% more likely to suffer serious injuries in their legs compared to male drivers.

 

Experts suggest that this is because women tend to sit more forward when driving in order to reach the pedals because their legs are usually shorter and they often need to sit more straight to see clearly over the dashboard.

 

Women are also more likely to get traumatic in rear-end collisions because they have less muscle in their necks and upper torsos than men.

 

Testing has also been blamed. In the past, crash test dummies were typically tested on the average man's body. At the time European crash test dummies were designed, 76 percent of road crash deaths were men.

 

So using an average male dummy allows testers to be sure that the assessments will relate to the largest proportion of accident victims.

 

Using women's dolls for car tests

But new research, such as the University of Virginia Center for Applied Biomechanics, has helped drive calls for female crash test dummies to account for the difference in female anatomy. In the US, female crash test dummies have been used since 2011.

 

As part of the new EU rules, carmakers will have to get direct collision protection - such as airbags and seat belts - that are not harmful to women and the elderly.

 

Luc Bosdet, of the AA, said Britain risks falling behind the rest of Europe and will end up with a massive road safety gap if the rules are not formally introduced.

 

He said our best hope is that UK-based manufacturers such as Nissan, Toyota, BMW and Jaguar Land Rover might introduce these measures anyway due to the logistics of creating two production lines for two sets of regulations.

 

Six former transport ministers urged Transport Secretary Grant Shapps to adopt the rules, saying they would prevent more than 200 deaths a year and 1,000 serious injuries.

 

The Department for Transport told the Sunday Times it was studying the measures and would implement appropriate requirements for Great Britain and improve road safety.

 

Car Safety Package

The features are part of a broader package of car safety measures in the European Union, including a device to prevent a drunk driver from starting the engine and Intelligent Speed Assist, a system that urges motorists to monitor the prevailing speed limit.

 

Safety measures, which also include advanced emergency braking, aim to make cars and trucks less lethal to pedestrians.